Moonlight's embrace: A Harry Potter Love story
by bangtananimegirl
Summary: Luna has had feelings for Neville ever since they met in the cart, pulled by thestrals. In the following months, they fought alongside Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny against Death eaters inside the Department of the mysteries. As sixth year comes forward, Luna's feelings for Neville grow, but her confessions can never come out. At the same time, fellow Rolf Scamander tries to get
1. Prologue

_**Some parts of this chapter is from Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix movie!**_

 _ **(This is just quick recap of some scenes in Harry Potter and the order of phoenix so it's really short! The quotes I've put in aren't exact quotes from the book/movie and I've changed up some things as well. Just a heads up!**_

Luna climbs into a cart, pulled by creatures called threstrals. They could only be seen by those who have seen death, and unfortunately, she was one of them. Her mom had died when Ishe was nine years old due to an experiment with a spell. She pulls out the quibbler, turned it upside down and began to read.

"What is that? Pulling the carriage?"Luna lifted her head over the magazine to see a teenager boy with messy hair and round glasses. Her eyes trailed instinctively to his forward and she immediately sees the lightning bolt scar on his forehead.

"Nothing's pulling the carriage, Harry," Said the curly brown hair girl next to her; she knew her as Hermione. A lot of people talk about her because she's very smart in classes."It's pulling itself, like always." As he and his friends approached the carriage, she found the courage to speak.

"You're not going mad...I can see them too,"Luna tells him, lowering the magazine to meet his eyes. "You're just as sane as I am."His other friends, one with ginger hair and one with black hair stared at me. She blinks back calmly, already used to stares like these from her fellow classmates. They were a year above her, but she didn't hesitate to start a conversation with them.

"Everyone, meet Loony-" Hermione broke off, embarrassed. Luna turns to look at her. She looks over at the boy in front of her who was holding some kind of strange plant. Their eyes met and they quickly looked away. She brushes her hair to hide the fact that she was blushing. She could feel the heat rising up her face. _Isn't that Neville? He's really nice, I think, but I know others bully him._ She thinks to herself.

"I hope there's pudding," She blurted out randomly, hoping to distract the others from looking at her face.

 _A few months later (at the Department of Mysteries)_

Luna had her wand out and ready. She could her friends, panting next to her as they fled the Death Eaters. _Bam!_ She stunned a man with a bearded face who was looming over her seconds ago. She felt somebody grab her hand and shove her to one side just as a jet of green shot an inch away from her ear. She turned to thank her rescuer and she spots a glimpse of Neville's short messy hair before he bolts off in a different direction. Luna continued to run until she felt five other bodies slam into her from the front. It was the rest of the gang.

"Reducto!" Ginny shouted as a death eater flew towards them from down the aisle of shelves. The blast blew it back but also triggered the shelves to begin falling.

"This way"! Harry ordered as he began running. Luna quickly followed him as they slammed through a door. She gasped as the ground opened up below their feet and they began to plummet towards the ground. She closed her eyes, waiting for impact, but found herself hovering an inch above the ground before dropping. As she got to her feet, she was quickly drawn to the whisper of voices coming from the arch just a few feet away from her. She could tell by the way Harry was leaning towards it that he could also hear them.

The others looked confused and disoriented. A faint rumbling sound made everybody turn around. Luna tightened the grip on her wand and stood in formation behind Harry. What happened next filled her vision with a black smoke then hands grabbed her and she felt them tighten around her throat. She tried to attack her perpetrator, but she could barely move. When she moved her eyes, she could see the others being held back by death eaters with wands at their throats.

"Give me the prophecy or they die," Lucius Malfoy stepped out of the shadows with a malicious look in his eyes. Harry glances around at his friends.

"Don't do it Harry!" Neville shouts, but Bellatrix silences him with her wand. With shaking hands, Harry places the prophecy in his hands, looking defeated. _Harry...you didn't have to do that..not for us._ Luna thought. Then she held back a gasp. A man had apparated behind Lucius, Sirius Black by the looks of it. The man Harry had wanted to save. His godfather.

"Get away from my godson," Sirius spat, punching Lucius across the face. There was a flash of white and the death eater holding her was thrown back against the wall. Immediately, Luna grabs her wand from her pocket and ducks down behind the rocky base where Harry stood. The Order of Phoenix had arrived and they were fending off the Death Eaters. Neville and the others joined her.

"We have to help them!" Hermione whispered urgently.

"How can we? The Order is barely fending them off too." Ginny whispers back, watching as Tonks battled Bellatrix in the far off corner. Lupin joined her, but Bellatrix turned back into black smoke and started to fly around the room in circles, laughing tauntingly. Then Luna sees another death eater creeping up from besides Ginny. Luna leans back and shoots a red jet at him, blasting him back against the wall.

"Thanks, Luna!" Ginny says, staring at the unconscious death eater with a hard stare. The rest of them stayed alert, blasting spells whenever they could under the protection of the order. The day, unfortunately, didn't end in the best way. With Sirius dead, Harry had lost the only family he held close. The next day, she spotted him in the hall, while hanging up posters for her missing things, which had been getting stolen over the past few days.

"Are you sure you don't need any help looking?" He asked her.

"No, I'll be alright. I'm sorry about your godfather Harry...the things we lose always have a way of coming back to us, you'll see," She touches his hand lightly and then turns and skips down the hall.

4


	2. Chapter 1

p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;"Luna grabs her suitcase and hands it to a man on the train before boarding it herself. She looks at each compartment, peering to see who was inside. Then she saw him. He was sitting with Ginny, Harry, Hermione, and Ron. She opens the compartment door and took a seat next to Neville./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""How was your summer, Neville?" She asks shyly./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""It was great. How 'bout yours, Luna?" He gives her a small smile. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""It was good," Luna replies./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""What about you three?" She asks, addressing the others, who seemed to be curious as to why I only asked Neville. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Well, nothing is great with staying at the Dursley's place," Harry said dryly. "But they mostly pretend I didn't exist as usual so I stayed up in my room."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Summer isn't exactly relaxing now...not with so many death eater attacks written in the daily prophet," Ron muttered. Hermione nodded in silent agreement, her eyes drifting out the window. Luna rummaged through her bag until she found her spectrespecs and her Quibbler magazine. She flips the Quibbler upside down and began to read./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Get back here, Trevor!" Neville dives underneath his seat to get his toad, Trevor. Luna was just about to help them when they heard a voice at the door. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Hello, Harry," Everyone looked up to see a bold-looking girl with large dark eyes, a prominent chin, and long black hair pushing open the door. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""I'm Romilda Vane. Why don't you sit with us instead of em style="box-sizing: border-box;"them/em?" She points over at Neville, who was halfway under the seat./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""They're friends of mine," Harry said, his voice cold./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Oh," Romilda said, looking shocked. She closed the door without another word./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""I suppose people think you should have cooler friends than us,"Luna said serenely./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""No one else fought with me at the Ministry, so that makes you cool," Harry replied. Luna beamed. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""What's a Crumpled Horn Snorkacks?" Neville asked, reading over her shoulders. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""It's a really rare magical creature," Luna explains. "Wizards haven't found them yet, but I suspect they are out there somewhere. Probably hiding from the wackspurts that those explorers have."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""But they don't exist!" Hermione pointed out. "Haven't you read em style="box-sizing: border-box;"Fantastic beasts and where to find them/em ? Newt Scamander has never found one of those Crumpled Horn Snorkacks."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""He doesn't need to find them to prove they exist. Maybe I will find one someday and prove their existence," Luna said. Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but instead she opened a book and began flipping through the pages silently. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;"The next day, the first class she had was herbology with Neville and Ginny. She met the two of them near the Great Hall and we walked to class together./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""What herb is this?" She asks Neville, knowing that he was very skilled in herbology. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Those are puffapods. They bloom if you touch them," Neville tells me. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""And this is one is gillyweed. I remember giving this to Harry to use when he competed in the Triwizard tournament. It allows the user to have gills...oh gosh I was so worried it wouldn't turn out well...I was only fourteen and not as skilled as Professor Sprout," He stopped suddenly as he realized he was rambling and that the Slytherins were snickering at him./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Ignore them. I know you're very smart in herbology and you should continue being yourself," She tells him, giving him a smile. His ears turned scarlet and he quickly went back to work as Professor Sprout came around to check on them. Once in a while, she'd ask Neville about a certain type of plant and what they did. After class, Ginny and I walked to our next class./p  
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p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""He's a really smart kid. I want to know more about him. And my other friends of course, " She added quickly as Ginny raised her eyebrows at her. She was not used to her friend talking like that. Luna's tone seemed to have changed the instant she spoke about Neville. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""We spent a lot of time together last year, so I learned to understand you more as well. You're very different from anyone I met, but you're my friend."Luna smiled and they entered the potions class together. They were immediately silent as they entered knowing how much Snape did not like them, but then blinked in surprise as they saw Professor Slughorn greeting them instead of Professor Snape./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Oh I completely forgot! Professor Snape is teaching Defense Against the dark arts this year. I have him for my last class, thank goodness." Ginny breathed a sigh of relief as they filed in next to the other students. Luna was aware of a few Slytherin and Hufflepuff students snickering at her from the back, prompting Ginny to shoot them a fierce glare. Their task today was to brew a Draught of Living Death./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Don't worry, Ginny. I never pay any attention to them and they eventually give up." Luna assured her./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Draco doesn't seem to have given up," Ginny grumbled./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Don't let him bother you. He's not very fond of Harry or any of us, is he?" Luna shifted her potions book closer to her before adding more ingredients into her brew./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""He hates everyone," Ginny said simply. "Except for the Slytherins, course. He favors them wholeheartedly. At least I have him at the end of the day"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-size: 18px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;""Ignoring the negative things in life is the best life to live," Luna told her./p  
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	3. Chapter 2

Just a quick reminder in case people are confused:Luna and Ginny are in their FIFTH year of Hogwarts while Harry and the rest are in their sixth year.

After Charms class, Luna waited at the courtyard. She noticed Malfoy among a group of Slytherins and immediately turned her attention to a snail that was slowly crawling up one of the stone pillars. "Hey, Loony!" Luna could hear their approaching footsteps. She turned their backs to them and move to wait inside the entrance of the courtyard instead. She could see Ginny approaching and by her side was Hermione, Ron, and Harry. Harry glared over at Malfoy for a brief second before turning to his friends.

"He never stops, does he? The foul git," Ron muttered. Hermione only shrugged and tucked her scarf tighter around her neck. As they sat down to order their drinks, out of the corner of her eye, she could see more people either glaring at Harry or staring at her. Years of training had taught herself to ignore the nasty comments people made behind her back.

"You sure it was a good idea to come here? People aren't exactly your favorite fan." Ron glanced around the bar.

"Let's finish our drinks and leave," Hermione agreed. "We're attracting too much attention as it is." They all nodded in agreement. They finished up their drinks, left a few sickles each at the table and walked back to the castle. Luna headed towards the forest instead as it was still daylight. As she walked, she could hear light footsteps of something in front of her. She stopped as a baby threstal stepped out the bushes, flapping its small wings. She reached into her bag and took out a piece of raw meat wrapped tightly in aluminum foil. She tosses it towards the threstral and smiles as it eats. She stayed there for a while before heading back to the castle. As she approached the courtyard, she was surprised to see Neville waiting for her.

"Hey, I had a question about Charms class today. Can we go up to the library?" Luna nodded her head and they went up to the library together.

"I'm having trouble on the stunning spell,"He seemed a bit embarrassed. "I know you're very good at charms, so I was wondering if you can teach me,"

"I'd be happy to help you. Harry can probably help you as well. He's very gifted. Do you want to meet up during break tomorrow? Same time as today?"

"Yes, that'd be nice. I'll ask Harry if he can come as well. I better get to potions class ." He gathers up his books and leaves. She watches him leave before going off to her next class. When class ended, she heads towards the forest to visit the Threstrals again. As she takes out the apple she had placed in her bag that morning, she hears sneers and laughter behind her. She turns around to see Malfoy, Goyle, and Marcus Flint walking towards her. Luna shakes her head and tries to ignore them, knowing that they were among the unfriendliest people in the school. She reached out her hand with the apple towards a young threstral that was wandering towards her.

"Hey Loony! Off making friends with beasts again?" Malfoy shouted. The threstral reared back and ran back to its mother and they all scattered. Luna let out a sigh and stood back up.

"You know. You call threstrals beasts when they're one of the friendliest creatures. Maybe you should do the same and learn from them," She snickered slightly to herself and headed off in a different direction. As she walked, she was aware of the footsteps following softly behind her. Then from in front of her, an arm grabbed her. She opened her mouth but closed it when she saw Neville pulling her behind the tree.

"Let's run," He whispered. Luna nods and they ran, holding each other hands as they did so.

"Get them! It's Longbottom!" There were yells from behind them. Luna turned and aimed her wand at the leave on the ground.

"Reducto!" The leaves exploded right into their faces along with dirt and rocks. They yelled out before falling over. Neville tightened the grip on her hand and they ran back to the school.

"Thank you Neville."  
"It's no problem Luna..I don't want anybody else to be targeted by the likes of them...especially not you," He pauses then turns bright red.

"I'll be late for my next class. See you!" And runs up the stairs. Luna laughs as she watches him go.


	4. Chapter 3

During lunch the next day, they sat together with Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny. Luna takes a bite of her ham sandwich with one hand, and holds the upside down Quibbler in her other hand. After lunch, she headed out to the Quidditch bleachers to watch Ron practice as keeper. Lavender, she notices was staring admiringly at Ron as though he was a prince. Hermione, on the other hand kept flickering eyes between Ron and Cormac Mclaggen.

As Luna watches, half way through the match, Mclaggen reaches his hand to block the quaffle, but without warning he moved to his right, letting the ball through the goal. There were some snickers among the bleachers, but Mclaggen looks stunned. Luna glances over at Hermione, but she had not moved and simply smiles when Ron blocks four quaffles in a row.

"Hi," A voice next to her made her jump. She turned to see a scruffy brown haired boy grinning at her.

"Hello there. Who are you?" Luna replies.

"I'm Rolf Scamander. I think you might know Newt Scamander because he wrote "Fantastic beasts and where to find them," He said eagerly.

"I've read that book. It's very interesting, but he seemed to have missed a few creatures," said Luna. Rolf frowns.

"Really? I've always felt like there were a couple more mythical creatures in the wizarding world as well..."

"And the way the ministry has rated thestrals to be very dangerous! It's quite ridiculous...my friends and I have rode on them before and they are very gentle creatures. But since you can't see them without having to see death, the ministry are wary of them, but the truth is they haven't even met them!" Luna said, with indignation in her voice.

"You've seen death?" Rolf said curiously.

"My mother...she died when I was nine," Luna stops and turns to attention back to the field. Harry was shouting at Mclaggen for bossing everyone around and the rest of the team was glaring at him as well.

"You seem to be very close to Harry..." He stops and his questioning eyes met mine.

"Oh yes, we are very close friends. He's a nice guy. " Luna said. Rolf shuffles his feet before standing up.

"I've got herbology next, how about you?" He asks.

"Astronomy. So I've got to head up to the tower," Luna replies.

"Are you coming to see the Quidditch match Saturday? It's Gryffindor VS Hufflepuff," said Rolf.

"I'll be cheering for Gryffindor then...most of my friends are in that house anyways," She added as Rolf gave her a surprised look. They walked until they got to the main stairway, then parted ways. As Luna took her exam on the constellations during class, her thoughts drifted back to when she had gone with Neville to Hogsmeade.

" ! Please pay attention," Her teacher's voice jolted her out of her daydream and she dipped her quill. For the rest of the week, she seemed unusually bored and kept staring outside the window during class. Then came Saturday, which was the Quidditch Match. She dug through her trunk until she found her huge lion mask and wrapped it around her head. Then she headed out towards the bleachers.

Lavender was jumping up and down every time Ron blocked a goal and was getting some strange looks from the rest of the Gryffindors. Hermione shifted away from her, her cheeks flaring and glared at her. _Is she jealous?_ Luna wondered. Of course she could never ask this to Hermione directly. She was not interested in budding into people's personal life, especially her friends, but she had noticed a kind of closeness between Hermione and Ron, one that was different from hers with Harry. The crowd burst into cheers as Professor Mcgonagall handed over the house cup to Harry. Luna watched as Hermione hurried after the Gryffindor team and they headed towards their own common room for a celebration.

"Wanna join us, Luna?" Ginny asked, grinning as she pushed through the crowd towards me.

"No, I'll be in the courtyard. I'll let you and the rest of your house celebrate," Luna said serenely and starting towards the stairs.

"Hi Luna!" Neville calls as he hurried upstairs to meet her. "Where you heading?"

"Probably a walk in the forest," Luna tells him.

"Alright, I'll see you around," He pauses. "Right?"

"Of course!" Luna watches him until he disappeared into the Gryffindor common room. Luna goes past Hagrid's hut and heads into the forest. It was bright and peaceful in the day, unlike at night, when it was dark and musty. As she wanders deeper in, she marked every three trees she passed with a white slash with her wand so she wouldn't lose her way. As she walks, a beautiful white unicorn stepped out from behind a tree. Luna got down low and reached into her bag to get the apple she had placed in there during lunch. She quietly rolled the apple towards the unicorn. It raised its head to look at her with glowing eyes, then cautiously stepped forward to eat the apple. By the time it was sunset, there were three other unicorns standing in the meadow.

"Hey, you really shouldn't be out here after dark. You don't know what kind of monster could get you!" A loud voice from behind her startled her. The unicorns scattered into the woods as soon as they heard it. Luna turned around to see Malfoy and next to him was Blaise. She picks up her bookbag and starts walking in the opposite direction. Malfoy looks stunned as she simply brushed past him.

"Best to go home now. It's nearly dark," She says in a dreamy voice, then starts skipping back to the school. All the while she could hear the footsteps behind her and she started speeding up her gait. Just as she reached the entrance, she was surprised to see Rolf waiting for her.

"Hey Luna. Do you want to go to the dining hall with me? We could go grab something to eat." Then he glances behind her and narrows his eyes.

"Malfoy, what are you doing? Following her?" Rolf's hand slips towards the wand in his pocket.

"Let's go eat. They just happened to be in the woods too. Probably looking the centaurs," Luna says.

"But don't centaurs, not like humans?" Rolf said, baffled.

"Exactly," Luna replied. "Now let's go." Rolf walks alongside her, still confused as they headed towards the Great Hall.

 _Several months later, Harry invites her to a Christmas party held by Professor Slughorn._

"Would you like to go with me? As friends, I mean," Harry had asked.

"I'd love to go with you as friends!" Luna had said happily. Now Luna was in her dorm, sifting through her clothes in her trunk and she pulled out a shiny, pink layered dress. She puts in on and examines herself in the mirror, deciding to leave off her accessories this time.

 _What would Neville think? What if he thinks there's something between me and Harry? Oh, I wish I'd told Ginny._

 _"_ Loony is going on a date with Potty!" Peeves cackles, startling her and she came out from the Ravenclaw common room. She ignores him and waits for Harry in the hallway right by the stone courtyard. He shows up a few minutes later and together they walk down the lantern-lit hall towards the party. As they entered, Professor Slughorn boomed a greeting to Harry.

"Hello, Professor Trelawney!" Luna called as she saw her divination teacher, but she seemed to have not heard her and was staring into space.

"I'm planning to be an auror," Harry was saying to Professor Slughorn.

" _I don't think you should be an Auror, Harry. The Aurors are part of the Rotfang Conspiracy, I thought everyone knew that. They're working to bring down the Ministry of Magic from within using a combination of Dark Magic and gum disease._ " Luna said calmly. Everybody turned to stare at her. Even Professor Trelawney had snapped out of her trance and was looking at her with a look of interest on her face.

Luna shrugs and goes to get herself some butterbeer. She sees Rufus Scrimageour, the vampire near the drink table and quickly grabs a cup before shuffling away. She looks around to see Harry hurry after a brown, bushy haired girl into a small confided space covered by a curtain. Deciding not to bother them, Luna tells Professor Trelawney , who seemed to be deeply interested. about the Rotfang Conspiracy. Then she saw him. He was pacing the hall outside the room where the party was held, as though he was deeply troubled about something. Luna hurriesd to meet him.

"Neville! I've been wondering where you've been." Luna said.

"I just needed some fresh air...someone else took over as server while I was out here," Neville mutters, avoiding her eye.

"If you're wondering why Harry asked me, then it's just as friends. He couldn't go with Ginny so he decided to ask me." Luna explains, carefully observing Neville for his reaction.

"What? I never suspected anything between you two...it's just...I..um-" Neville looked away. "It's getting late...I think I'll go back to my dormitory," He turns to walk away,

"Is everything alright? Are you upset because you wanted to come as a guest and not a server?"

"Uh no, that's not really it...nobody would ask me anyways." Neville muttered.  
"I don't think that's true. You're a great person, Neville. Don't you know that?" Neville nods and smiles slightly.

"I was really planning to ask you...since I wasn't sure if you were going to have a date..like me, but I guess I wasn't fast enough."

"Harry and I are only going as friends," Luna blurts out unexpectedly.

"Oh right," Neville looked startled at this sudden statement. "I...uh never suspected anything else. Well, I'll best be off, Luna. I'll see you around," Luna watches as Neville hurries away. It was very late when Luna returned from the party. Exhausted, she took off her dress, placed her nightgown on and threw herself onto her bed.

 _I wonder why Neville was acting like that...Is he ok? Maybe it was because of the way she acted._ Luna shook her head and buried her face in her pillow. She had never thought down about herself before, but she knew she was different even if she had found people who understood her. Either way, she had always shown a strong will when she was at school and around her friends. Sometimes at home, she would think about her mom and feel sad but remembered that she had to always be there for her father and that her mother would always be in her heart, even if she was gone. She turns on her side in bed and watches as the cloud moved away from the moon before falling asleep.


	5. Chapter 4

When the holiday break ended, the classrooms were once again filled with students all around. Ron and Hermione, Luna noticed had not spoken for the longest of time. Ron was now spending more time with Lavender than the rest of his friends ever since winning the Quidditch match. As she passed by the girl's bathroom,she heard crying and went in to investigate, thinking it was Moaning Myrtle. To her surprise, she saw Hermione, rubbing her eyes with tears streaming down her face. Luna went over and wrapped her arms around her, having a feeling that she knew what was behind it. Harry came around the corner and dropped off her stuff.

"Everything alright?" Harry asked awkwardly, looking over his shoulders nervously. Hermione doesn't speak, but her expression had turned to anger.

"Clearly, he's too busy with his girlfriend and no longer cares about his friends at the people who _actually_ care about him," Hermione said coldly. She snatched up her books and ran out before either of them could respond. Staring after her, Harry and Luna followed her and parted ways once they got outside. As Luna walked off to Transfiguration, she spotted Neville down the hall and called out to him

"Neville!" she shouted. Neville stopped for a split second, then sped up and disappeared around the corner. Confused, Luna hurried after him, but he had already gone into the classroom by the time she caught up. He had taken a seat next to Hanna Abott, who was whispering something into his ear.

"Luna, over here!" To her surprise, she spotted Rolf in the very corner of the room and with a reluctant glance at Neville, went to sit next to him.

"Oh, did you transfer to this class?" Luna asked him serenely.

"Yes, I asked if I could still change my schedule. Usually I can't, but since I am one of her top students in herbology, she made an exception."

"Ah I see," Luna replies, taking out quills, papers, and books. The rest of the class for the two of them was quiet. Rolf kept asking her questions about what magical creatures she wanted to study, but she wasn't really paying attention to them. After class, she hurriedly gathered her things, but Neville was already disappearing out the door. She ran, nearly knocking over Rolf as she ran out the door. When she was close enough behind him, Neville stops abruptly.

"Luna, I know you're there...shouldn't you go to your next class?" asked Neville, turning around halfway.

"We haven't spoken in a while. How about we walk to the dining hall together?" Luna asked.

Neville shakes his head "I've just been stressed out lately...just the thought of all those death eaters out there scares me...especially-" He stops, suddenly dropping his gaze to the ground. Luna steps forward and takes his hands gently.

"Whatever is out there, we can face it together.. We'll have our friends with us, we're never alone." Luna urged. Neville finally raises his face to look at her.

"Sorry Luna, but I just need time to think things over alone." He pulls his hands out of her grasp and runs off, leaving Luna staring after her. During lunch, she tells Ginny what happened.

"So you think he's been avoiding you? Could this be involved in what happened during the Christmas party?" Ginny suggested.

"But surely he knows that I don't feel that way about Harry...I mean _you_ know that right?" Luna pointed out. Ginny's face turned red.

"Why should _I_ know? I mean...I'm with Dean...and," She stops as Luna gives her a meaningful look.

"Neville...maybe he doesn't understand why Harry asked you..I mean most people invite the person they like to a party, right?" Ginny implied.

"Yes, Harry likes me as a _friend._ Doesn't that count?" Luna said pointedly.

"Most people don't think that way," Ginny replied. "If he was upset about the party, it doesn't make much sense for him to mention death eaters unless he was trying to make up excuses. You should know Neville is a particulary sensitive person, ever since he was younger. "

"He did mention death eaters, but he seemed to be stressed about one particular death eater, but he stopped speaking before he mentioned their name," Luna puzzled.

"One death eater? But there are so many..."Ginny murmured. Luna thought hard about the death eaters they had met last summer.

"Maybe it's Bellatrix," Luna said suddenly. Ginny stared at her.

"Yes, my dad wrote about how she and the rest of the death eaters broke free from Azkaban last year during You-know-who's return. Of course nobody believed us since they were too busy reading the Prophet," She let out a small huff.

"You think Bellatrix has something to do with _Neville_?" Ginny wondered.

"Yes...but how do I find out more?"Luna sighed.

"Well, it's best not to force it out of him. Whatever he went through must be really personal if he doesn't tell even us,"Ginny stops as Harry approaches along with Ron.

"Where's Hermione?" Ginny asked, peering behind them. Ron shrugs absently and sits down while Harry casts him an uncomfortable look before sitting down next to him. Ginny looks at them suspiciously but doesn't say anything. Luna flips through her books and concentrates on her homework while fiddling around with her hair. Then Lavender approaches and flings her arms around Ron, giving him kisses on the face and neck. Ginny nudges Luna and indicates with her head towards the hall entrance while casting glares over at Ron. She nods, picks up her books and hurries after Ginny.

"Why Lavender out of all the girls in Gryffindor? I can't believe my brother can be so blind..."Ginny muttered angrily. Luna casts a sideways glance at her, almost unsure of what she meant. As she walked, she nearly collided with two girls nearby.

"Watch it," The girl muttered angrily before turning to whisper something in her friend's ears. They both snickered, glanced back at her before hurrying away. Ginny shot them a fierce glare as they walked away. Neville rounded around the corner and Luna and Ginny made their way over to him.

"Hey, do you want to join me at Hogsmeades?" Neville asked.

"Isn't it closed temporarily? Didn't you hear what happened to Katie Bell?" Ginny responded.

"Hang on!"Luna said suddenly. "We were there...we were all there..I overheard Katie talking with her friend Leah. She was complaining about something Katie was holding and how it could be dangerous."

"I didn't notice," Neville said, surprised.

"I saw Malfoy there as well..."Luna added. "He was behind the stairs, but he disappeared the second our eyes met so I wasn't too sure."

"What other blond boy could be lurking around like that?" Ginny said, disgusted."Anyways, perhaps you should tell Professor McGonagall. Hermione told me that Harry told her that it was Malfoy who gave Katie that cursed necklace, but Professor Snape interfered, saying he had no proof. You are a witness!"

"She would never believe me though. Why would she single out Malfoy as the one who did it when there were so many other people in Honeydukes? She doesn't know his personality, not like we do."Luna said firmly.

"Let's go somewhere else then. I'd rather not bad-mouth Malfoy especially if Professor Snape overhears," Neville said nervously, looking around his shoulders.

"Like I'm scared of him!" Ginny muttered, but follows Neville anyways.

"If we're not going to Hogsmeade, then where do we go?"Luna asked. Ginny shrugged.

"The Room of Requirement?" Neville suggested.

"Why would we need to go there?" Luna asked, surprised.

"I dunno..I guess it just brings back old memories." Neville replied.

"The room needs more of a reason to show itself than just 'old memories', Neville," Ginny says amused.

"But, there really isn't anywhere else to go. Unless you want to go to the library like Hermione," Luna teased.

"I don't see why not," Ginny huffed. She headed up the stairs, then stopped, turning back towards them.

"You two can go along and do whatever you want. I just remembered I need to write up an essay for one of my classes," She hurried away so fast that Luna barely saw the grin on her face. Trying to feel brave, Luna turns towards Neville.

"Where do you want to go? Maybe to the lake? Or we can go back to the forest," Luna suggested.

"What if Malfoy is there again?" Neville asked nervously.

"We'll make sure to avoid him," Luna assured him.

"But what if he's with his gang?"

"You've fought against more dangerous people before,"Luna said, sounding surprisingly fierce but reassuring at the same time. "Malfoy is just one person. Goyle and Crabbe are just his minions. What are _they_ compared to the death eaters we fought last summer?" Neville looked at her, his eyes wide, then a thoughtful looked passed his face.

"You're right Luna. I guess I've been picked on by them for so long I've never thought to stand up to them," Neville smiles. Luna smiles back.

Luna took a deep breath and stepped a bit closer to him, looping her arm with his, aware of the tension in her every muscle as she did so.

"We can go wherever you want,"Luna said, feeling heat creep up her face once more like it did every time she saw Neville. He leans closer to her and Luna felt as if her heart had stopped.

"Of course, but isn't it fair to let the lady choose?" He says in a teasing voice.

"I choose that turning over the decision to you is better," Luna says firmly.

"Alright, whatever you say," Neville says They walk side by side, shoulder to shoulder, arm in arm.

Note from Author:

Chapters may take longer than usual to go up each week. Even though its the summer, I've been busy studying and doing summer reading.I'll try to get at least 2 chapters up a week. I hope you've been having a nice summer!


	6. Chapter 5

_"_ Hey Luna, I need to talk to you," Neville's voice snaps Luna out of her dream-like state.

"What is it, Neville?" She stands up to greet him as he walks over to her table.

"Can we go somewhere private?" Luna nods and together they leave the Great Hall. She was barely aware of Ginny's gaze watching them go. They walk away to a hallway next to the main courtyard.

"I haven't really told anyone this besides Harry and, well I think I should tell you to. I'm not ready to tell anyone else yet, but I really trust you because you're someone who will always listen and be there for me." Luna nods, shifting her feet nervously.

"My parents...the reason I was so sensitive last year about Bellatrix breaking free was because of them. She tortured them...for information, but they never gave in." Luna sucks in a breath and reaches out.

"I'm proud of them...but I just hope that one day...they will be proud of me but...they can't even recognize me as their son." Neville stares at the ground.

"Neville, I know your parents are proud of you. You're brave and strong just like they were. Last year, we face on death eaters and held our own against them...well mostly." Luna recalls the Order Of Phoenix coming to the rescue. "We can face this together and end the war. As long as we're together with our friends and this school, we can do anything." Then Luna did something without thinking. She stands on her tip-toes and kisses him on the cheek. Immediately, she back away with her face red. Neville's face was in shock and was also crimson red.

"I-," She turns around to run away, but Neville grabs her hand, spins her around and leans in for a kiss. A real one.

"Th-that was just a thank you...for listening to me." Neville lets go of her hand and walks away silently down the hall. Just as he disappears from view, Luna could see the leaves blowing into the courtyard, signaling the first signs of spring. It was also the first bloom of love.

 _Several months later..._

Luna leans against Neville as they both hold up their wands against the Dark mark looming over them in the night sky. Luna wipes away a teardrop and shifts to one side as Harry made his way towards Professor Dumbledore's casket.

"Did you hear what Harry said..?" Words murmured quietly among the students.

"He said it was Snape who did it,"

"Ridiculous! Why would he do that?"

"No one knows what really happened, right? I mean Harry was the last person seen with him,"

"Snape was seen fleeing the castle along with a few death eaters."

"He may have been chasing them out!"

"No he wasn't attacking..."

Luna pressed her face into Neville's shoulder to block out their words.

"What's going to happen now?" Luna whispered.

"We stay strong," Neville said firmly, but his voice was still shaky. "Whatever comes, we need to face it together or we die trying." As he spoke, Lavender Brown, Seamus, Dean, Fred, and George turned to look at him, looks of fear but determination in their eyes.

"I will fight by you...no matter what," Luna grabbed Neville's hand and he squeezes it.

 _One month later_

Luna looks up as Lavender Brown and Seamus entered the room of requirement. There were beds all around the room and many students were on the ground in sleeping bags, talking quietly among themselves. Neville went over to greet them

"Any news?" He asks quietly.

"The halls have been quiet. I saw the Carrows and a few other death eaters patrolling the hall, but they never noticed us" Lavender reports

"Neville, I heard that the sword of Gryffindor has been returned to the Headmaster's office...when should we fetch it?" Ginny asks, strolling forward.

"Tonight at midnight..just the three of us," He nods at Luna and Ginny.

"What about us?" Seamus demanded.

"I need you to be in charge while I'm gone." Nevile places a hand in his friend's shoulders and nods to him.

"If only we had Harry here..his invisibility cloak... and his Marauder's map." Luna says quietly. Ginny shook her head quietly. "He's on his own little request with Hermione and Ron. It's an important one. Important enough to leave all of us behind." She sounded bitter; Luna remembered that Harry had broken up with her just before leaving. He had done it to protect her. So Voldemort wouldn't hurt her to get to him. Just before the clock struck 12, Luna, Neville, and Ginny headed out, keep a sharp eye out around every corner. When they reached the Headmaster's office, they saw two death eaters standing guard outside.

"I'll distract them. You two go!" Luna tells them. Ginny nods, but Neville hesitates, the look of worry glowing strongly in his eyes.

"I'll be ok...I promise." Luna tells him, not really knowing if her words were truthful or not. She runs down a nearby hallway and send sparks up to the ceiling, creating a loud bang. Immediately the two guards turn and start running towards her. Luna whips out her hand and stuns one of them before running again. She whips around several corners before stopping to catch her breath."

"Hey you!" Luna freezes and turns around to see Alecto Carrow, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher walking towards her.

"What do you think you're doing so late at night?" He snarled. Luna tightened her grip on her wand.

"I was looking for my robes. Someone stole them and I need them because it is cold," She tells him.

"Like I care! You can freeze for all I care. Get back to your dorm!" He snapped.

"Wait," Another death eater came to stand beside Alecto.

"Is this the Lovegood girl? Whose father writes the Quibbler?" He asked menacingly.

"Yes," Alecto said. Fear shot through Luna as she slowly begins to back away.

"Don't you move!" Luna stops as two wands point in her face. Then two more stuck into her back from behind. Then there was a loud smack, pain shooting through her head and then blackness.

She awoke to a raspy, old voice calling to her. She looks up and blinked as she saw sitting next to her.

"Are you alright, miss?" He asked in a weak voice. Luna sits up, ignoring the pain in her neck and looked at him. His body was slouched and he could barely keep his head up and eyes opened.

"I'm fine, sir. Are _you_ alright? Are you hurt?" Luna gets up and moves closer to him, looking for injuries.

"No no.." But his voice died to a cough. Luna rummages her jacket but her wand was gone. She takes off the jacket and wraps it around , then gets up and wanders dungeon. She could see the door that had bars on it and voices drifting around upstairs. After realizing there was no way out, she goes back to 's side and helps keep him warm. She was careful not to ask what had happened to put him in so much pain and told him stories about the creatures she wanted to find such as the Crumped Horned Snorkack.

It was nearly pitch black by the time a short, snubbed nose man came down with a lamp and tossed them some bread and fruit. Luna gives most of it to Mr. Ollivander, trying to ignore the loud rumbling in her stomach. She picked up two small sharp stones and smacked them together to make a small fire for the empty lamp that was in the room. As Mr. Ollivander tried to share the jacket as a blanket with her, a small galleon fell out from the pocket. Luna picks it up and gasps, realizing that it was no ordinary galleon and it was the special kind that she and her friends had used when they first formed Dumbledore's army. Sadly, the only thing the coin did was issue the next meeting and there was no way to communicate with Neville and the others back at Hogwarts. Luna keeps the lamp close for heat and closed her eyes to sleep.

The next morning, she was awoken with a loud banging sound at the door. Mr. Ollivander was still asleep so she got to her feet, snatching up the stone she had used last night as her only means of defense.

"No need for that rock, girl. You've got about three wands pointed at you. You stand no chance," A nasty voice told her. Trembling she dropped the stone and tried to keep her head high as three snatchers stepped into view.

"You will come with me for questioning. You will answer me truthfully or I can gladly turn you over to Bellatrix," he sneered. "She hasn't used the Cruciatus curse since last month and she's looking forward for some new victims.

 _Bellatrix!_ Luna thought. Neville had told her about how she had tortured his parents..the day he he had kissed her. She also remembered the day he confessed. Memories flooded through her head as she thought back to that day when he had confessed her, just a week after the kiss.

 _"Neville! Wait up!" Luna laughed as they flew into the sky on thestrals._

 _"Can't wait!" He giggled. "This thing is flying too fast," the thestral snorted loudly and made such a deep dive that he squealed. When they finally landed, they were both laughing so much their sides hurt. When it finally stopped, Luna took out some food and butterbeer from her bag and they ate it together._

 _"I have something to tell you," Luna said quietly, turning to stare straight into his eyes. Neville blinked back at her, looking worried._

 _"We've been friends for a long time. Ever since I first met you, Harry and the others, I've been happy because people rarely talk to me and stare at me strangely. You guys are different and I've been grateful for our friendship," She began._

 _"But," She said before Neville could reply. "I've been feeling that between us, it's becoming more than a friendship," She looked up at Neville again and his eyes were wide._

 _"Us? Truly?" There was a hint of longing and hope in his voice._

 _"Yes, us," Luna smiled._

 _"But...then...," he looked away, his expression confused. "Why did you accept Harry's invitation to Slughorn's party?"_

 _"Oh that. He wanted to go with Ginny...but she was already going with Dean at that time. Harry didn't have anyone else to go with, so I went with him as friends," Luna explained._

 _"I was going to ask you...but when I realized I had no one else to take, Slughorn offered me a role as the waiter. I had no choice but to accept."_

 _"I see," Luna took his hands in hers and leaned in. Before she knew it, they had both shared a kiss that afternoon. Their very first kiss._

"Hey, girl. Quick daydreaming! Come with us," A rough hand grabbed my arm, shaking the happy memories out of her.

"I have a name," She mutters through gritted teeth. They drag her roughly upstairs and shove her into a wooden chair.

"You know Potter, don't you?" One of the snatchers barked.

"Yes..but I haven't seen him since the end of the school year last year," Luna replies. _Oh wait...the wedding...best not to mention that.._

"Did he mention anything about his whereabouts?" Another one asked.

"No," Luna said. That part was truthful.

"Your father..he writes the Quibbler doesn't he? Well you won't be going back to him anytime soon because of the scum he's been writing in his work," Luna bit her lip to stop herself from shouting back at him. She could see Bellatrix gleaming menacingly at her from behind Lucius Malfoy.

"Can't I have a little fun?" She cackled. It took Luna's best effort to stop herself from flinching.

"Once we capture Potter and friends, you can have plenty of fun..especially with Miss Granger. We'll leave this one in one piece since she's no half-blood or mudblood. Wormtail, bring her back to the dungeon," A short, snubbed nose man grabs her sleeve, keeping his wand pointed at her and drags her back into the dungeon, locking the door.

"Are you alright?" Mr. Ollivander limps towards her. "Did they hurt you?"

"No..they only asked me a few questions. They didn't torture me because I'm pureblood..." Luna tells him. Luna sat down and they spent the rest of the days exchanging stories.

 _A few months later..._

"Harry?" Luna asks uncertainly. There was a flicker, then a ball of light traveled to the lamp. Luna could see clearly now. Ron and Harry were looking at her.

"Luna," Harry said, his eyes flickering to Mr. Ollivander and Griphook, who had arrived a month ago. A loud cry of pain upstairs turned Luna's attention away from them. She stops herself from trembling as she recognized who it was: Hermione. Harry takes out a piece of broken mirror from out of his sock and speaks into it.  
"Help us please!" Luna cocks her head, but decides not to question it.

Footsteps echoed towards them and Harry and Ron stepped back away from the door as Wormtail stepped into the cellar, his wand pointed at them. He grabs the goblin, locks the door and disappeared back upstairs. As soon as he was gone, a loud pop made Luna jump, followed by the appearance of a house-elf.

"DOB-" Ron elbowed Harry to stop him from shouting.

"Harry Potter..Dobby has come to save you," The house elf bowed in his direction.

"Take Luna and Mr. Ollivander first," Harry said at once. "to-to,"

"Shell Cottage," Ron cut in. Dobby nodded and turned to Luna and .

"Whenever you're ready, sir," Luna smiles Dobby looked surprised at being addressed in this manner.

"Sir? I like her very much," he comments before taking their hands. They disappear with a pop. Luna and Mr. Ollivander look around. They were on a beach and there was a small cottage in the distance and white sand that went on for miles. Dobby disapparated again and Luna helped towards the cottage. They knock on the door and a blonde women open the door slightly, her wand pointed towards them.

"Who are you? State your name and business," She said in a commanding, but trembling voice.

"I am Luna Lovegood, daughter of Xenophilius Lovegood who is the editor of the Quibbler. I am friends with Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. I came to your wedding. I was in a yellow dress," Luna said as much as she could until a tall ginger man stepped out from behind the woman.

"It's alright, Fleur. I recognize them and she speaks the truth. Come inside and tell me what happened. I'm Bill by the way," He beckons them quickly explained everything and told them that Harry and Ron were at Malfoy Manor and would be arriving soon after rescuing Hermione. Fleur helped Mr. Ollivander upstairs. A loud crack outside made Luna stand back up and rush outside just in time to see a small figure collapse into Harry's arms. Luna froze for a second, then sped up. Ron was standing with an arm around Hermione, both of them looking on towards Harry, their expressions distraught. Luna could see the figure clearly now; it was Dobby. A wave of sadness nearly overwhelmed her and it took more than enough effort to push away the tears. She crouches down next to Harry who was crying softly.

"We should close his eyes,"Luna said quietly, looking at the dead house elf, whose glazed eyes were still opened. Luna reaches out her hand and closes his eyes.

"There,"She murmured. "Now he's sleeping."

"I want to bury him," Harry said, his voice sounding stronger. "Properly...without magic," He added. Luna gets to her feet and starts walking among the beach, looking for shells.. Bill hands them several shovels and they dig a hole not too far from the ocean, right near a semi-circle of ferns that grew in the sand. When it was done, Hermione and Ron wrap Dobby into a blanket while Harry carved words into a stone. _HERE LIES DOBBY, A FREE ELF_

Carefully, Harry takes Dobby's body from Ron and kneeled down to place it into the hole. After they covered him with sand, Luna lays flowers and shells around the grave. When everyone went back inside, Luna goes into the room that she was to share with Hermione and sat looking out toward the ocean.

 _Neville, I hope you are ok. Not just you, but everyone else as well. Ginny and the rest of Hogwarts. I'll be back, I promise. I will fight beside you till the end._


	7. Chapter 6

EDIT: Please re read the scene where Luna was having a flashback. I've made some changes to it!

Luna takes a deep breath and made her way towards the Room of Requirement. A month after she had arrived at Shell Cottage, gotten a new wand and was soon sent back to school after visiting her father, who had been extremely worried. Luna was not too happy to know that her father had tried to turn her friends in but forgave him soon enough.

"Luna," A voice made her turn. Luna turns, expecting to see Neville, but it was Rolf instead.

"Luna you came back.."His voice was barely more than a whisper.

"Where were you?" He demands when Luna didn't speak.

"I-the death eaters, they took me to Malfoy's house...they questioned me about Harry and kept me prison there for a month.

"What happened?" Students begin to crowd around her, questions buzzing like flies into her ears.

"The death eaters...they took me to Malfoy's house. They tried to question me about Harry," Luna explains.

"Luna, you're back." Neville was standing there before her, his face dirty and bleeding from one side, but it was his eyes that Luna was focused on. The gleaming eyes that had poured into hers as he held her in his arms. Luna stands there, too uncertain to move, but eventually, Neville steps forward to hug her, followed by Ginny and the other students.

"Glad you're safe!"

"You're one tough girl!"

"You're brave!" Voices echo around the room. After a while, Neville and Ginny pull to one side.

"You say _Malfoy_ did this?" Malfoy and his friends had always bullied Neville and he had been scared of them. But there was no fear in his eyes now. Only a look of anger and determination.

"Did he hurt you?"Ginny demands, her eyes blazing like flames.

"N-no..the death eaters didn't torture me...maybe it was because I'm pureblood," Luna says hastily, feeling her head spin at so many questions being directed towards her.

"But Harry and the others were there as well. They were captured a month later, but Dobby helped us escape," Luna sits down and the others crowded around her as she explained what happened.

"Hermione's alright, isn't she?" A girl with curly light brown here asks anxiously.

"She's fine. They all are," Luna responds, but in her head, she could still hear the screams of pain when she was in the dungeon. She lowered her voice and they leaned in. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione might be arriving soon. I'm not sure when. It's best if you don't talk about it...I don't want the headmaster to find out," She whispered.

"Here, have something to eat. You must be hungry. Everyone, back away and give her space," Seamus, stands up and cups his hand over his mouth as he spoke. Neville hands her some chicken wings, a few pieces of bread, a cup of juice and some fruit. As Luna ate, students began to talk again.

"Did you hear about how the new defense against the dark arts teachers tortured Mary White? She was only 11!"

"There is any defense against any dark arts being taught to us! We're learning the cruciatus curse for crying out loud!"

"I refused to do it.."Neville said quietly. "That's how I got this." He points to his face.

"You were very brave to defy death eaters like that. I..realized I need to be strong as well. I endured my time well at the Malfoy's," Luna replied.

"You are brave. You sacrificed yourself so we could try to steal the sword of Gryffindor, but we were caught," Neville told her and he looks away. "And so were you...

"Don't blame yourself. It was _you_ who led us. All of us were once part of the Order of Phoenix and we rose again because of you, Neville. You've been the bravest out of all of us," Luna turns to look at him.

"Me? How am I brave? I was just a boy from Gryffindor who couldn't stand up for himself, have been picked on, and had bad things happen in my life," Neville's voice rises slightly and there was a look of distress on his face.

"You are _not_ that person anymore!"Luna said, her voice uncharacteristically fierce. "I've never seen you like that! You are a strong Gryffindor boy and you should be proud of it! Live up to your house expectations. I don't see a boy that can't stand up for himself. I see a boy who was brave enough to steal from the headmaster. Professor Snape! You were once scared of him, I know. But times have changed and that means we _all_ need to change, no matter if we think we can or not and you've already changed from the moment I met you in the Order of Phoenix," Luna takes a deep breath. Neville was staring at her with round eyes, then the unhappiness disappears from his eyes to be replaced with determination.

"You're right..t-thank you, Luna," he stammers. Luna smiles.

"Anything for a friend," She replies. _But you're more than a friend..._ She thought silently.

"Everything has changed... Will anything ever be the same again?" Cho sighs as she shifts closer to them.

"If it will, then we will be the reason for it," Luna says firmly. Cho gives her a look of respect that Luna had never gotten from her. None of the Ravenclaws looked at her in a way other than a weird stare.

"Until Harry gets here, we have to continue our defiance. Our parents want us to go home, but we've refused. Hogwarts is our home and we will fight to defend it," Neville stood up and walked away to talk to Dean and Seamus. Ginny and Cho left as well. When Luna was alone, Rolf approaches her.

"Hi," he says quietly, sitting next to her. Luna gives a nod of greeting, not knowing what to say.

"Look, I've been meaning to tell you this for a very long time...but I think you're wonderful. You're a really kind person. I hate how people look at you as if you're some other species. You're different. Everyone is different from one another, but you're different in a special way. A unique way. That's what I like about you," Rolf said, his face turning red. Luna opens her mouth to speak, but Rolf places a finger on her mouth.

"I know what you're going to say. I know you will never feel the same way about me. I just thought..that maybe if we did end up together. We would be able to share common interests...like finding some of those undiscovered creatures..but I've realized now that that isn't the way I should choose someone to spend the rest of my life with. There has to be a real strong connection. Something beyond friendship. A way of bonding and understanding of each other's interests and heart's desires. I don't think we share that strong of a bond," Rolf took a deep breath but Luna spoke before he could open his mouth again.

"Rolf, I really do like you as a friend. You're smart and funny, but it's best if we just stay friends. I'm not accusing of you of not understanding me within but-,"

"I don't," Rolf interrupts. "Neville understands you in a much deeper way than me, Ginny, even Harry and his friends. You've gone through something together, but separate. Whatever happens, will you fight beside me?"

"Yes," Luna replies. "I will fight alongside everyone." Rolf gazes deep into her eyes and Luna could see pools of regret and sadness inside them.

"Good luck...whatever comes next. I hope I will be strong enough to face it," Rolf stands and walks away without another word. Luna walks around the room until she bumps into Neville again. His face is unreadable, but he takes Luna's hands and drags to a private corner of the room. Luna's heart thump as she raises her head to look at him. To her shock, he had tears in his eyes.

"Neville?" She asks quietly.

"Y-you promised to come back..." His voice sounds broken.

"Neville, I-," Luna couldn't continue before Neville throws himself around her. Luna could feel his lips around hers and she closes her eyes to embrace it. It only lasted a few minutes before he pulls away. 

"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, He whispers. Luna tries to tighten her grip on his hand but he was gone, leaving her alone in the corner.


	8. Chapter 7

NOTE: Some of the quotes were taken from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book!

"Is that Harry?"

"HE's back! Hermione and Ron too!" Luna turns away from where she was practicing dueling with Ginny and Cho.

She forces her way through the crowd of people who were at the back of the room. Harry was addressing everyone in the room.

"What are we going to do, then Harry?" asked Seamus. "What's the plan?

"Plan?" repeats Harry. "We need to do something and then leave."

"Leave?" Neville echoes. "What do you mean, leave?

"We haven't come back to stay," Harry says. "There's something important we need to do-"

"What is it?"

"I- I can't tell you."

There was a rippling of muttering in response.

"Why? It's something to do with fighting You-Know-who, right?"

"Well,yeah-"

"Then we'll help you!" Luna pushes her way next to rest of Dumbledore's army nod in agreement.

"We've got to do it alone," Harry insisted.

"Why?" Neville demanded.

"Because Dumbledore left the three of us a job...he only wanted us three to do it. "

"We're his army," Luna pipes up. "Dumbledore's army. We were all in it together." 

" I don't see why you can't trust us. Everyone in this room's been fighting and they've been driven in here. Everyone in here's proven they are loyal to Dumbledore-loyal to you," Neville added.

Harry looked frustrated. "Listen," he said, his voice rising in panic, "I'm sorry, but there's something we've got to do, and then-"

"So you're going to leave us in this mess?" Michael Corner demanded.

"No," said Ron. "What we're doing will benefit everyone in the end, it's all about trying to get rid of You-know-who-"

"Then let us help!" Neville says angrily. We want to be a part of it." As he spoke, there was another noise behind them and Ginny, Fred, George and Lee Jordan climbed into the room.

"We're fighting aren't we?" said Fred, taking out his fake Galleon.

"Alright," Harry said at last. "You can help," Hermione mutters something to Ron and Harry, but Luna could not make out what it was. She sees Harry and Ron nod in agreement and Harry turns his attention back to them.

"We need to find something that'll help us win this war. It's here at Hogwarts, but we don't know where. It might have belonged to Ravenclaw." He glanced over at Luna and the other Ravenclaws.

"Well, there's her lost diadem. Remember I told you about it?" Daddy's trying to duplicate it."

"But it _is_ lost," Michael Corner pointed out.

"Centuries ago," Cho adds. Luna immediately sees the disappointment in Harry's eyes. "I can show you what it looks like. There's a statue of Ravenclaw in our common room wearing a diadem."

"I'll take you there," Luna says. "I know someone who can help." Harry nods and follows her.

Luna takes the lead towards a small cupboard that opened into a steep staircase. They pull out their wands to create an illuminating light in the staircase. They continue on until they reach a door. There was no handle and no keyhole, nothing but a plain expanse of aged wood, and a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle. Luna reaches out hand and knocks once. At once, the beak of the eagle opens and a soft musical voice comes out of it.

"What came first, the Phoenix or the flame?" it said. Luna thinks for a long time then finally found her answer.

"I think the answer is that a circle has no beginning."

"Well reasoned." The eagle says and the door swing opened. The Ravenclaw common room was deserted. Harry immediately goes over to the statue of Ravenclaw and stood to examine the statue.

"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure." He read.

"Which makes you a pretty skint, witless," said a cackling voice. Luna whipped around, her wand at the ready just as she saw the figure of Alecto Carrow and her hand raising to press a finger against her forearm.

"Stupefy!" Luna shouts, knowing that her intentions were to call Voldemort. Aleto slumped to the ground unconscious just as echoing footsteps came from the ceiling above them. Harry seizesLuna and pulls her under his invisibility cloak. A stream of Ravenclaws from the dorms step into the room and surround Alecto's body. One of them bravely pokes her with his big toe.

"I think she might be dead!" He shouts in delight. The other Ravenclaws let out tiny shouts of delight. There was a rap on the door and every Ravenclaw instantly fell silent, their terrified eyes on the door.

"Where do Vanished objects go?"

"I don't care!" An uncouth voice snapped. Luna recognized the tone of Alecto's brother Amycus. "Alecto? Are there you there? Have you got Potter?" There was a series of loud bangs. Several Ravenclaws scrambled up the stairs in fright.

"May I asked what you are doing, Professor Carrow?" _Professor Mcgonagall! Oh please stun him!_ But Luna knew she would never do that, especially not with the army of death eaters waiting outside the crumbling wall of Hogwarts.

"Just open this door!" Amycus snapped. A cold rush of anger rushes through Luna at the disrespectful tone he used towards her teacher.

"Where do Vanished objects go?"

"Into nonbeing, which is to say, everything," replied Professor McGonaagall.

"Nicely phrased," replied the eagle door knocker and the door swings open. Amycus took one look at his sister and starts yelling.

"The Dark lord thinks we've got Potter! She sent for him and now he's not here. He'll kill us both!"

"Potter? What do you mean?" Professor McGonagall said sharply.

"He told us Potter might try and get inside Ravenclaw Tower and to send for him if we caught him."

"Why would Potter try to get into Ravenclaw Tower? He belongs in my house!" Luna could hear a little strain of pride in her voice.

"We can push it off on the kids," Amycus says gleefully. "Say Alecto was ambushed by them and forced her to press her mark. He can punish them." The rage she had never felt before shoots through her and she was half tempted to slip out and curse him, but Harry grips her hand tightly and shook his head.

"I will not allow you to harm any more students."

"You are not in charge anymore, Minerva. We are in charge now." He spat in her face. Luna felt Harry pull the cloak off himself.

"Crucio!" Luna flinches as the death eater was lifted off his feet. He writhes in pain for a few seconds then crumbled to the ground.

"Potter!" Professor McGonagall whispers. "You're here! How? Potter, that was foolish!"

"Yes, it was. But Voldemort is on the way."

"You must flee. Now!"

"I can't," Harry says calmly. "There's something I need to do, Professor. Do you know where the diadem of Ravenclaw is?"

"Of course not! It has been lost for centuries!" As she spoke, Luna saw Amycus stir.

"Imperio!" Professor Mcgonagall mutters Luna watched as Amycus hands over his wand and lays back down next to his sister. As they descend down the stairs, Harry pulls the cloak over them once more as more footsteps approach them, coming up the stairs. Luna did not see who it was, but she felt Harry's body tense up.

"Have you seen Harry Potter, Minerva? Because if you have, I must insist-" Snape's voice was cut off as there was a large movement in front of them. Luna was dragged out of the way just as a ring of flames flew past them.

"Minerva!" Professor Fliwick and Professor's Sprouts sprinted up the corridor toward them.

"You will do no more murder at Hogwarts" He squeals raising his wand. Luna was pulled down again and she did not see more of the battle, only the sound of metal. Then Snape runs past them with McGonagall, Flitwick and Sprout shouting after him.

"What happened?" Luna demanded, but Harry does not answer. Just then, she felt a vibration in her pocket. She reached in and pulled out the fake galleon. There were tiny words written on it.

 _Main hall, now!_

I'm sorry, Harry, but I need to go!" Fear for Neville was pushing Luna away from Harry. He turns and nodded at her and hurried away. "You can find the Gray lady if you go down taht flight of stairs and take a left."

"Be careful!" He yells as they parted ways. Luna stuns a death eater on her way and cast a full-body bind on another one. A hooded figure glides towards her. Gulping, Luna thinks up the happiest memory she could think of. _She was standing on the beach looking out at the sea. Neville was next to her and they were smiling and watching a girl with dark brown hair laughing..._

"Expecto patronum!" She shouted. A hare flew out of the tip of her hand and ran at the dementor as if it had horns. It was glowing so brightly that Luna had to shield her eyes and barely saw as the dementor fled. Seamus, Lavender, and Dean hurried towards her, their faces battered and bruised.

"That was amazing, Luna! I've never seen a patronus so bright!"

"It must have been a really good memory!"

"Guys, I don't have time. We need to help fight,"Luna pants. As she spoke a couple more death eaters advance on them. Seamus stuns one and Dean dodges to one side as a killing curse was aimed at him. Luna threw a full body bind at the death eater but missed. Hands grab her and pulled to her one side just as a streak of green flashed past her hair.

"Thanks, Lavender," She gasped, a jolt going through her as she realized how close she had come to being hit. There were not many death eaters stationed inside the school, so they were outnumbered, but Luna did not know how long the force field would last 

"We need reinforcements!" A voice yells from afar. Seamus and Dean run off, cursing death eaters as they ran. Some students were on broomsticks throwing rocks or using their wands as well.

"Luna, Ginny says the bridge needs to have a couple more hands. I'm going to go. Be careful!" Neville runs past her as he speaks. He looks into her eyes for a long time before leaving. Luna watches him go, fear tight in her belly, but soon turns her attention back to fighting.

"Luna! Over here!" Cho waves her hands at her and Luna hurries over. A girl laid injured on the bed next to her. With a jolt of realization, Luna saw that the girl was much younger than her, perhaps even a first-year Promfrey hurrys over, shooing both of them away as she tends to the girl's injuries. A loud shout sounded from above.

"The barrier!" Luna looks up to see thousands of sparkling lights hitting the force field. Death eaters and students alike stop to watch; students with a look of horror while death eaters had a look of triumph on their faces. Finally, a very large ball of light slammed into the force field, and it began to crumble. Students scream in fear, but they were cut off as Death eaters lashed out at them. Luna grabs Cho's hands and they began running back into the school. More Death eaters poured in, including trolls and spiders. Spells flew over their heads just as they reach the school. Aberforth steps forward and knocks them back with a huge shield. For a split second, she catches sight of Harry, Hermione and Ron slipping their way through the chaotic battle, but they had gone before she was sure.

"Pay attention!" Cho hisses into her ear, pulling her to one side as a death eater tried to stun her. Cho blasted him away with a spell and Luna quickly knocked down a female death eater who had been advancing on another student.

"Fred!" A cry of anguish echoes in Luna's ear. She turned towards the sound and saw Percy, Ron's oldest brother standing over the body of another red-haired boy. _No!_

"Come on!" Cho grabbed her arm and they ran up the stairs to the upper part of the school. "They need more reinforcements at the front of the school in the main courtyard!" They knocked down a few more death eaters along the way. Luna's leg collapses from under her as a death eater knocks her down. She rolls off to one side to avoid another curse, but finds herself trapped against a wall. Cho was struggling to fight two death eaters at once, so she could not come to her aid. Luna fumbles for her wand, but the death eater was already pointing hers at Luna. Just as Luna grabs hold of her wand, a jet of red light slams the death eater into the ground. Another jet of light knocks away a death eater who had had Cho in a headlock. Luna turned her head to see Neville, Ginny, and Lavender pointing their wands out. Neville helps Luna to her feet while Ginny helped Cho. The death eaters had gotten to their feet again and two more had joined them, their face full of hate and viciousness. Luna and her friends advanced on them with confidence. When they were done, the death eaters were buried under a pile of rocks.

"We need to go help the others," Neville says firmly, his eyes resting briefly on Luna. She did not question his seriousness, but only came to his side. She could see blood running down his face.

"Are you ok? What happened?" Luna asks.

"I kinda almost fell off when I made the bridge break.." Neville said sheepishly, "But I managed to climb back up."Luna bit her lips to keep herself from laughing but a wave of relief flooded over her as well.

"We will keep fighting or die trying," Luna tells him. They began running down the stairs. But as they ran, a voice spoke out, making everyone freeze in their tracks. Cho covered her ears and sank down to the ground as she realized who it was. Luna, however, only stared up at the sky, her eyes surprisingly calm. Voldemort's voice was echoing throughout the school grounds.

"You've have fought valiantly, but in vain...every drop of magical blood spilled is a terrible waste...I, therefore, command my forces to retreat.. treat your dead with dignity. Harry Potter, I now speak directly to you. On this night, you have allowed your friends to die for you instead of yourselves...Meet me in the forbidden forest at midnight or I shall kill every man, women, and children.." The voice dies away. Her friends were murmuring anxiously to each other next to her. They slow down their pace as they head towards the hall. Luna scans the hall for Ginny, who had run off ahead and sees her surrounded by her family. She was crying softly as she stares down at her brother's body. Luna comes over and wraps an arm around her shoulder. _Fred..._ Luna hugs her tighter as her own tears began spilling down her cheeks. Whatever strength she had felt during the battle had disappeared as she let her grief take over.


	9. Epilogue

_20 years later..._

"Come on Matilda, stop bothering your younger sister. You are in your third year at Hogwarts and you should stop this childish behavior," Luna said firmly.

"I'm 13, not 16," Matilda retorts. "And this book is _mine_! Not yours!"

"Just buy your own book!" A girl with dark brown hair snaps back, lifting the book higher into the air as her sister tries to jump up and grab it.

"Kayla, you should know better than to talk to your older sister like that. Just give her the book," Neville said sternly. Kayla gives the book to her dad and runs off.

"Hey!" Matilda shouts, but Kayla ignores her.

"There they are! But where are Hermione and Ron?" Luna said, pointing to Ginny stood with Harry. Next to them were two boys and a young girl with identical ginger hair. From where Luna stood, she could see Harry kneeling and talking quietly with his son.

"Hi Luna. Hi Neville!" Ginny greets them with a warm smile as they approached.

"Lil! Thank goodness you're here! You cannot believe how annoying older siblings can be," Kayla babbled.

"Really? Because I have _two_ older siblings, Kayla," Lily said. "I can't believe we have to wait another year to start Hogwarts!"

"Right? Every time my parents drag me here just to escort my sister and all I can do is get jealous!"

"Hi everyone!" Ron and Hermione had finally arrived. "You got everything right? All your books and clothing?"She asks her daughter, Rose. Their younger son, Hugo stays close to Ron, his eyes darting shyly around.

"Yes, mom. I have!" Everyone hugs before they helped their children board the train.

Ron mutters something about Scorpius, Draco's son before waving goodbye. Matilda turned to Kayla and hugs her tightly before disappearing on the train.

"She's not that bad..my brothers never hug me because I'm a girl," Lily mutters.

"She's only doing that because your parents are here," Kayla replies.

"Kayla, let's go. I'll take you out to your favorite restaurant. Dad will be leaving for his job at Hogwarts soon." Luna calls.

"Bye, Lily. I'll try to call you if I know how the phone works." Kayla waves goodbye. As she follows her mom out of the station, she looks back to stare at the Platform 9 3/4 sign and wondered what adventures would await her in the years to come.

 _Thank you for reading my story! I hope you've enjoyed it! There may be a story about Kayla in the future. Look forward to it!_


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